‘Frozen’ Sets Box Office Records

“Frozen” books are being displayed in a bookstore in Seoul on Tuesday.

Disney’s smash-hit animation film “Frozen” is on the verge of setting a milestone in South Korea.

The film, which opened on Jan. 16 in the country under the name of “겨울왕국” or “Winter Kingdom,” has already set two records. It became the country’s highest-grossing animation film ever and the second-most watched foreign film after James Cameron’s blockbuster “Avatar,” which is also the country’s most watched film ever with 13.3 million tickets sold.

Now ranked ninth on the list of all-time hit films in South Korea, it is inching toward surpassing the 10-million mark in ticket sales.

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As of Tuesday, the Disney animation film has recorded sales of 9.66 million tickets, grossing over 77.5 billion won, or $72.4 million, according to the Korea Film Council. The number makes South Korea the most successful market for the movie outside the U.S. It earned more than 12% of the movie’s overseas box office revenue of $596 million according to Box Office Mojo.

Disney

Olaf the snowman

The popularity isn’t just limited to the film. Data from the Korea Publishers Society shows three “Frozen” books — including a storybook for children – were among last week’s local top 10 best sellers.

On Monday, the film’s Korean soundtrack — nine songs in total — was also released. The film’s original songs — “Let It Go,” “Do You Want to Build a Snowman,” and “Love Is an Open Door” – have topped local music charts for long now. K-pop idols also rushed to sing the title song, “Let It Go,” after a rendition by Hyorin from Korean girl group, Sistar, became a hit.